This has been one of the most testing weekends for the Robinson Race Cars Pro Mod Team. As I’m sure most people have heard by now, in the third qualifying session the Stude caught fire which took hold leaving not a lot of car left. Andy jumped from the car once it was stopped and escaped with no injuries. Although taken to the medical centre and given some oxygen, this was just precautionary measure and was let go shortly afterwards. From little runs we did have this is an account of our weekend.

After leaving the Summer Nationals with a string of 6.0’s under the belt, we were quietly confident that we would be able to produce some good results just two weeks later in Finland.  Everyone has been waiting to witness a 6.0 at the FIA track in Finland and not only were we sure that there would be one, we’d definitely be one of the many teams fighting to be there first.

In our first qualifying session we raced Johan Lindberg aka ‘The Rockstar’. As Johan pointed out to Andy, this would be the race from the Main Event where we weren’t able to make the final. However Johan wasn’t as keen to put the money or points back up for grabs! – In this little arranged match race Andy pulled his usual awesome light and took the win with a 6.14. We were 2nd qualifier after Melanie Sorry Micke Gullqvist who ran a brilliant 6.12.

Johan and Adam Flamholc were also in the teens after session number 1 with a 6.17 and 6.14 respectively. In Session two we were against M. Gullqvist who had swapped his usual 57 Chevy for the US R2B2 Camaro for the weekend. We both put in great passes and Andy stayed with Micke to the 1/8th , who then began to pull away with the extra horses. Although Micke did also have a bit of help from a red light on the tree (Nothing to do with racing Andy ‘Tree chopping’ Robinson we’re sure!). We clocked an improving 6.10 and Micke continued also to improve with a 6.04. We were so happy with the way that Friday ended, the car was running sweet and more importantly no damage.

On qualifying session number 3, Andy again met Micke Gullqvist, many teams struggled to get down the track but we had a strong pass. Unfortunately, around the 1000ft mark, we suffered from rod failure causing a massive bang. The burst panel blew releasing flash flame which in turn ignited the oil around the engine. This wouldn’t have been so much of a problem, but from later inspection, we can only assume the crank rattling around caused vibrations and broke the fuel pump spraying fuel and vapour everywhere. This basically turned a small fire into a massive one. The body and the electrics and anything else that could have caught fire, did, and stood no chance against this. This was our 21st pass on the rods and we were planning to change them that evening after qualifying. They definitely need changing now!

Andy pulled the parachutes; hit the fire extinguishers and fuel shut off. As the screen melted before him, and smoke began to pass into the car, Andy pulled over in the direction of the fire crew and jumped out the car asap. He rolled to ensure he was not on fire and watched the fire crew extinguish the car. Even with how quickly they were able to get to Andy and get the fire out, the damage is just incredible. It was terrifying to watch as a crew/family member from the start line and not know if Andy safe or not. The safety crew briskly took Andy to the Medical Centre for a routine check, all ok!

The most important point is that Andy is fine. Even in the medical centre Andy was talking of how he’s going to fix the car, which is great news. The safety gear did its job and the fire crew were chasing Andy as soon as he past them. For that we are very grateful, as this accident could have been a lot worse. For all the teams that have offered us parts, workshops to rebuild the car in Sweden so we can make Mantorp we are also very grateful…We also would like to say thank you for anyone who has come and seen us, commented on Facebook, texted, called or even emailed any member of the crew to show their concern. Your support is also very appreciated.

So what are we going to do with the car? – Rebuild! Immediately

Unfortunately, there is not a huge amount that was untouched by the blaze. With the FIA Veidec Festival meeting being only 3 weeks away, we simply do no have enough time. The Stude will need stripping back to a bare chassis and rebuilding from then on. We are hoping that after we’ve stripped the car we will have a better idea of when we will make it back on the track. We will of course keep everyone updated on the rebuild during the next couple of weeks.

One thing is for sure… We will be back.